The following is a list of RUaD Communities:
- Othello School District/ Adams County/ Rural Initiative
- White Pass School District/Lewis County/ Rural Initiative
- CWU/Ellensburg/ Kittitas County/ Rural Initiative
- Dayton/ Columbia County/ Rural Initiative
State-level Efforts: Washington State Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking.
Key leaders from across the state meet monthly to provide collaborative leadership on reducing underage alcohol use in Washington State. The purpose of the Washington State Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking (RUaD Coalition) is to:
- Increase public awareness about the harmful effects of underage drinking.
- Serve as a communication hub for underage drinking issues.
- Provide guidance that may impact public policy.
- Collect information and concerns from local communities.
- Provide an advisory body for the OJJDP-funded Reducing Underage Drinking programs and support the Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grant (SPF-SIG) Advisory Council and other underage drinking-related initiatives, where appropriate.
- Review, track, and disseminate relevant data.
- Provide opportunity to share information and coordinate efforts among state agencies, tribes, statewide organizations, and others.
In the spring of 2006, DASA's RUaD program supported Town Hall Meetings on Underage Drinking in 55 communities across the state. A total of 3,669 adults and teens focused on the consequences of underage alcohol use and developed ideas for taking action in their local communities. The RUaD Coalition is using the recommendations from the Town Hall Meetings to develop their Plan of Action for 2006-07 while the local communities continue their work to reduce alcohol use among young people. The three strategies are:
- Reduce youth exposure to alcohol industry marketing;
- Conduct an adult-focused communications campaign which supports local efforts to reduce underage drinking;
- Support local law enforcement efforts to enforce underage drinking laws.
